Sailendra Java · 780-850

Borobudur: a mountain of stone

In central Java the Sailendra kings built Borobudur, the largest Buddhist monument in the world, with 504 Buddha statues and over 2,600 carved panels. Students explore how it was used and how Buddhism linked Java with Sumatra and India.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
45 minutes
Ages
10–13
On the map
3 steps, AD 800 to AD 856
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

In central Java the Sailendra kings built Borobudur, the largest Buddhist monument in the world, with 504 Buddha statues and over 2,600 carved panels. Students explore how it was used and how Buddhism linked Java with Sumatra and India.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Locate Borobudur and explain why central Java could support great temples.
  • Describe Borobudur's design and how pilgrims used it.
  • Explain how Buddhism linked Java with Sumatra and India.
2

Explore the map

12 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 800

Among the volcanoes

Open the map in 800 and zoom in on central Java. Find Borobudur on the plain between volcanoes. Why would rich volcanic soil help a kingdom build huge temples?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 780

Buddhism across the sea

Turn on Spreads > Buddhism and drag the slider to 780. Follow the spread from India across the sea to Java. Which kingdom on Sumatra lies on the way?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 856

Hindu neighbours

Pan about 35 km east to Prambanan, a great Hindu temple finished around 856. Why might Buddhist and Hindu temples stand so close together?

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

14 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. Borobudur has no great hall inside. What was it for?
  2. Thousands of workers cut and carved the stone. How could a kingdom feed and organise them?
  3. Why might Buddhist Borobudur and Hindu Prambanan be built so close together?
  4. Central Java has many active volcanoes. How might eruptions both help and harm a kingdom?
  5. Borobudur was later left behind and covered by plants and volcanic ash. Historians disagree why. What reasons can you think of?
4

Game round

9 min

Rule History has no Javanese ruler, so play Charlemagne, who ruled in Europe while Borobudur was being built. Let students take turns ruling. Then compare: what did Charlemagne build to show his power and faith, and what did the Sailendra kings build?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

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